It's a Sinclair project, this time from Clive's son Crispin. They've been keen to establish themselves ever since the C5. That electric assist trike set the standard by which all things with seats and pedals are judged. :-(
Although commonly looked at as a failure the C5 was made in large quantities and has become a 'collectors item' (Not at LB though!).
Now they return with a comfort bike / recumbent with roll cage. Layouts of this sort have already been around for years from HPV in Germany and Optima / M5 in NL. Arellcat has a Rans Sequoia that uses a comfort layout - as opposed to flat out recliner.
http://www.hpvelotechnik.com/produkte/spirit/index_e.html
The seat looks too upright of course for my tastes and the comfort level of a seat is normally the prime reason people choose such a bike. If a seat is too upright then the seat pad has to be well padded. For comfort rear suspension is quite normal too.
I can see the thinking an the keeping the chain inside is a neat trick - except when it comes to repairs. I've ridden a Greenmachine in NL and they are as advanced as anything made in quantity. The frame was quite noisy though.
http://www.flevobike.nl/en/GreenMachine/greenmachine.html
Of course they are saying this is 'just a bike' and it has nothing to do with what I would sell. This is trying to establish something on two wheels which is not a bike or motorbike...
For every pound spent making them expect to spend ten on marketing! Safety doesn't sell easily. What people want is the convenience of a car.
To sell this they'll need kick stands, panniers etc etc. The Shimano Steps motor is good though and we expect to have a trike with one fitted soon.
Their earlier one had a roof.
Link to this latest one...
http://sinclairinnovation.com/
They even have an animation of the bike going over the top of a Volvo. Double safety at work! ;-)